Ever noticed just how infectious a smile is?  Try it.  Next time you happen to make eye contact with a stranger, smile.  (Note:  this works best if you happen to be “passing” each other in the street or somewhere; if you’re crammed into a commuter Underground train in central London, people will assume you’ve just escaped from a lunatic asylum! – mind you, it might get you a seat…)

I digress.

I have a close relative just a couple of years older than me who hardly ever smiles (or maybe that’s just when she’s with me? J).  And as a result, or maybe because of it, her outlook on life is just so much more depressed than mine.  And she looks a lot older than she is.  I don’t look forward to spending time with her.

Now don’t get me wrong – I would not describe myself as an optimist by anyone’s definition.  I am happy to say that I have my feet planted firmly in the world of reality, – but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a lot of room for hope, positive thinking and happiness.  None of these characteristics would be on my top 20 of adjectives to describe my relative.  However, on those odd occasions when she does smile, her whole demeanour changes and I feel my mood lifting too.  It’s a positive upward spiral and I wish she was like that more of the time.   

But it’s hard to change your mindset.  However, it is easier is to change your habits. 

Science has proved that even if you are feeling sad, rearranging your face muscles into a smile can “trick” your body into feeling better, happier.  Natural endorphins are released into the blood to give you a natural “lift”.  This also affects people around you who smile back at you.  And that makes you feel even better! 

Smiling is a precursor to laughter, a great stress reliever and a natural antidote to depression.  Give it a go.  Even if you really feel miserable, smile.  If you do it often enough, you actually will become a happier person.

And that’s got to be good!

A Fun Fact...


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